Is messiness a sign of low class?

[Anonymous]

Yes in that rich people can hire this out

Look at how rich people now hire companies like the Home Edit to organize their pantries, fridges, and closets!

It’s low class to live in mess or filth

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
No, it's a sign of possible mental health disorders, such as ADHD.

Two people in my family cannot organize themselves to save their lives. They both have diagnosed ADHD, one of them quite severe. I can see how their ADHD directly affects their ability to keep a tidy personal space.

+1

Sometimes people with very little are taught to take care of their few things better/more. It is the spoiled people (NOT all rich people are spoiled, BTW - some have worked hard for what they have, and no one has given them anything!) who don't know how to take care fo their stuff. By spoiled I mean that their parents/ILs are still helping them well into adulthood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To add (PP here) - I know very successful people who are slobs, but that is not very common, from what I have seen. Most of the people who are slobs are just flat out LAZY and overwhelmed.

I know a lot of successful people who are secret slobs. They may present success at work, etc. but their houses are really gross. My friend just made partner in biglaw and seems really put together...but has the most horrific bathroomI've ever seen.

I've been in the offices of some biglaw partners which are really horrific. Like piles of paper everywhere all over the floor, mixed in with old food and trash....shudder. Other partners' offices would be the same, but they had secretaries that they tasked with cleaning up after them. So yeah, maybe rich people just have more resources they can throw at cleaning/organization. The first partners -- well, one said he liked it that way, and he didn't want anyone touching his stuff because he knew where everything was.

[Anonymous]

I always wonder if people who clean other people's houses all week keep their own houses clean.

[Anonymous]

I was going to say “yes.” Surprised at so many “no’s”

[Anonymous]

The worst house I’ve ever been in is that of some of our “richest” friends, who decided to move to a hobby farm. Their property is worth millions. They have a brand new $300K kitchen renovation. Their house reeks of cat urine (said as someone who owns cats), and is in desperate need of a vacuum and tidy. Both have awesome, professional, well regarded jobs, and they are DINKS (good for them, just pointing out that it’s nit that that’s keeping them from cleaning, nor are there kids “suffering”).

[Anonymous]

Grey Gardens

No

[Anonymous]

No. I grew up lower income. My parents were neat, and insisted we be also. I am now upper middle, and my 10 yr old DD is a slob, much to my disgust.

You don't see as many upper middle class people with messy houses because they have house cleaners.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do lower SES people live in slovenly conditions?

Is tidiness a sign of upper class?

I am not going to lie - when I see someone who doesn't know how to keep a house clean and somewhat neat, I think something went wrong in their upbringing. You don't have to have a lot of money to dust and vacuum your place, and take some pride in what you have. Your house does not need to be matchy matchy or trendy (in fact, I personally prefer a house that has original tastes within - not the cookie cutter, much overdone "Pottery Barn" look). But yeah, clean says you GAF in life and are likely not depressed.

That’s funny because that’s the way I feel when I see the number of people on DCUM who are very concerned with parsing exactly what should be considered low class/tacky.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was going to say “yes.” Surprised at so many “no’s”

Based on what

[Anonymous]

It's not about class but tidyness is a sign of good character imo.

I say this is a creative person who is really a mess. Not saying all tidy people are good or all messy people are bad. All things in balance and moderation, but I aspire to be tidy because it would show I'm in control and planning, not because it would make me seem rich.

[Anonymous]

Just plain old garden-variety messy? I think anyone can be, irrespective of status.

Hoarder-level messy? With rotting cars & old furniture choking the lawn, goat trails inside, with rodent & cockroach problems that the inhabitants accept as normal? I’ve only ever seen that in low-income areas.

[Anonymous]

The messiest, least organized people (all UMC) I know had parents who were controlling and insisted on everything being done their way, including scheduling and household organization. They were rebelling against their parents. It was really sad because it affected all areas of their lives.

[Anonymous]

Yes. The desire to hoard stuff comes from the fear of losing it and not being able to replace it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:no, but rich people can afford to hire people to clean up their messes.

+1

IME, there are plenty of wealthy people who don't even know how to clean a house well, or who, left to their own devices would live surrounded by clutter. Why? Because they never really had to clean up after themselves--they had housekeepers or cleaning services.